Surrey Business School reveals how company networks accelerate innovation
A new international study involving Surrey Business School has shed light on how the structure of internal networks within firms can significantly influence the speed of innovation – offering practical insights for research and development (R&D)-intensive industries aiming to stay ahead in the global innovation race.
The research, published in the leading journal Technovation (Elsevier), is titled “When do intrafirm networks accelerate follow-on invention? Evidence from biotechnology firms.” The study was conducted by Dr Nan Ding, Dr Liukai Wang (University of Science and Technology Beijing), Dr Arjan Markus (Eindhoven University of Technology), Professor Yu Xiong (Surrey Business School), and Dr Yali Zhang (Inner Mongolia University).
The team analysed over a decade of data from 223 US biotechnology companies to understand how the way inventors connect and collaborate within their firms affects how quickly those firms build on their own prior discoveries.
“Innovation speed is one of the most important competitive advantages in today’s knowledge-driven economy,” said Professor Yu Xiong, Professor of Business and Innovation at Surrey Business School. “Our study shows that how employees are connected – not just how many resources they have – can be the key to accelerating invention and bringing new ideas to market faster.”
The study found that:
- Highly clustered networks – where inventors work in tight, close-knit groups – can slow innovation by limiting exposure to fresh perspectives.
- Loosely connected networks with longer communication paths can boost innovation speed by increasing access to diverse knowledge.
- The optimal network structure depends on a firm’s knowledge diversity, tie strength, and the radicalness of its innovation projects.
These insights provide a new framework for businesses to rethink R&D organisation design, improve collaboration, and shorten innovation cycles – all without necessarily increasing R&D budgets.
“For leaders in sectors like biotech, pharmaceuticals, energy, and digital technology, this research shows that innovation performance can be engineered – by structuring internal networks in the right way,” added Professor Xiong. “It’s about aligning people and knowledge strategically, not just increasing investment.”
The study exemplifies Surrey Business School’s commitment to impactful, collaborative research that bridges management science and industry practice – helping organisations understand how human and knowledge networks can become powerful engines of innovation.
